(Unt  iHtllto|n 

GHiriatian 

The 

New  Emphasis 

By  Harris  Franklin  Rail 


It  outlines  Qod’t  revival  provi- 
sion for  this  hour.  Its  prac- 
tical outworking  is  the  Inter- 
church World  Movement’s  edu- 
cational stewardship  campaign 
for  Ten  Million  Stewards. 

INTERCHURCH  WORLD  MOVEMENT 
OF  NORTH  AMERICA 

45  West  18th  Street,  New  York  City 


Price,  3 cents  each; 
30  cents  per  dozen; 
$2.00  per  hundred 


Christianity  Redefined 

The  church  has  come  back  at 

LAST  TO  THE  EMPHASIS  OF  JESUS— THE 
KINGDOM  OF  GOD.  Christianity  does  not 
mean  a few  good  folks  meeting  for  fellowship 
and  worship.  It  does  not  mean  “saving”  a few 
folks  for  another  world.  It  means  a new  world 
here,  where  the  will  of  God  shall  be  done  for  the 
good  of  men  in  home  and  state  and  business.  That 
is  the  new  idea  which  is  back  of  missions  and 
the  Men  and  Religion  Movement  and  social  serv- 
ice, and  all  the  great  Christian  facts  of  this  age. 
The  church  is  here  for  that  end.  Christ  came  to 
that  end.  That  is  the  meaning  of  the  ages.  And 
to  that  end  every  Christian,  so  far  as  he  is  reajily 
Christian,  is  pledged  with  life  and  substance. 

Life  as  a Stewardship 

Jt  PERSONIFIES  a NEW  CONCEPTION 
TEN  MILLION  CHRISTIAN  STEWARDS 
of  the  Christian  life.  It  is  not  going  to  church 
and  keeping  certain  commandments  and  so  getting 
to  heaven  because  we  have  “been  faithful.”  It 
means  life  as  a trust,  a stewardship.  That  is 
Jesus’  idea  of  being  faithful,  which  we  have  so 
pitifully  narrowed.  He  does  not  -talk  of  being 
faithful  in  what  has  been  committed  to  us.  Life 
is  not  just  a probation  which  ends  in  reward  or 
punishment  in  another  world.  It  is  a power  and 
a possession  which  we  are  to  use.  God  has  made 
us  working  partners  in  His  plans  for  the  world. 


TEN  MILLION  CHRISTIAN  STEWARDS 


4 


The  New  Emphasis 


The  New  Testament  word  is  stewardship.  A mod- 
ern word  would  be  partnership  or  trusteeship. 

The  Stewardship  of  Time 

T HIS  STEWARDSHIP  HAS  MANY  SIDES. 
There  is  the  stewardship  of  time.  Not  one  day 
in  seven  belongs  to  God,  but  all  days.  A leading 
young  business  man  of  an  Eastern  city  told  the 
writer  that  he  was  making  his  plans  so  that  he 
might  some  day  give  half  his  time  to  distinctive 
Christian  work.  Another  in  that  same  city  is  giv- 
ing two-thirds  of  his  time  to  such  service.  A third, 
the  head  of  a large  corporation,  is  not  too  busy 
to  travel  across  the  continent  for  a missionary 
convention,  or  to  care  year  in  and  year  out  for  a 
great  Sunday  school  in  a downtown  district.  And 
these  men  all  give  as  a minimum  a tenth  to  a fifth 
of  their  income. 

How  can  I use  my  time  so  that  it  will  count 
most  for  God’s  great  end,  is  a question  which 
these  men  found  time  to  ask  and  answer. 


The  Stewardship  of  Business 

T HERE  IS  THE  STEWARDSHIP  OF 
business — not  how  we  spend  our  money,  but  how 
we  make  it.  This  does  not  mean  simply  being 
honest  or  keeping  within  the  law.  The  new  world, 
or  God’s  kingdom,  is  to  be  a world  in  which  jus- 
tice and  love  for  men  are  to  be  found  in  the  shop 
and  on  the  street  as  they  are  in  heaven.  Is  our 
business  being  done  that  way?  That  is  a big  part 
of  Christian  stewardship.  It  is  the  very  first  part. 
God  wants  to  know  how  we  make  our  money  be- 
fore he  asks  how  we  spend  it.  How  we  use  our 


TEN  MILLION  CHRISTIAN  STEWARDS 


The  New  Emphasis 


5 


time  in  business  comes  first  with  Him  before  He 
asks  how  we  use  the  remaining  hours.  Better 
fewer  libraries  from  steel  magnates  and  not  so 
may  men  in  the  mills  working  twelve  hours  a 
day  and  seven  days  in  the  week.  We  need  social 
justice  before  we  need  gifts  for  charities  or  mis- 
sions. Jesus  is  the  silent  partner  in  every  Chris- 
tian’s business. 


The  Stewardship  of  Money 

T HEN  THERE  IS  OUR  STEWARDSHIP 
in  the  spending  of  money.  One  brief  leaflet  can- 
not discuss  the  whole  question  of  the  Christian  and 
his  money;  or  a Christian’s  Financial  Creed,  with 
the  Christian’s  use  of  his  money  when  giving.  The 
fundamental  fact  here  is  not  tithing,  but  steward- 
ship. We  do  not  give  to  God  a fraction  of  that 
which  we  possess,  but  we  loyally  acknowledge 
God’s  sovereignty  over  the  whole.  Just  now  the 
church  has  no  bigger  need  than  to  have  Christian 
men  face  this  question. 

Some  Facts 

T HERE  ARE  SOME  FACTS  WHICH 

make  this  question  a pressing  one  today: — 

I Wealth  is  increasing  rapidly  in  this  country. 
Thirty  thousand  millions  is  the  amount  produced 
each  year.  Christian  men  possess  a large  share 
of  this. 

II  The  power  of  money  for  good  was  never 
greater.  Fifteen  millions  will  stamp  out  tubercu- 


TEN  MILLION  CHRISTIAN  STEWARDS 


c 


The  New  Emphasis 


losis  in  New  York,  says  one  expert.  Think  what 
a million  would  do  in  China  or  Korea  today ! God 
uses  human  power  and  waits  upon  it.  Money  is 
simply  stored-up  human  power,  ready  to  be  used 
in  any  field. 

III  The  world  has  never  seen  such  opportuni- 
ties for  Christian  investment.  Here  at  home  a 
nation  still  in  the  forming,  the  peoples  of  the 
earth  at  our  gates,  the  church  face  to  face  with 
great  tasks  and  a great  program.  Looking  abroad, 
we  see  open  highways  with  multitudes,  open 
hearts,  great  nations  in  transition,  and  messengers 
at  home  ready  to  be  sent,  and  native  workers 
yonder  waiting  to  help. 

IV  The  church  is  standing  still  instead  of  leap- 
ing forward.  At  home  our  strength  is  consumed 
in  discussing  “finances”  instead  of  being  rallied 
for  a great  aggressive  movement.  Abroad,  where 
nations  are  waiting  to  surrender  to  their  Lord, 
we  are  calling  off  the  troops.  And  the  church  of 
God  of  all  the  earth  stands  apologetic  and  sup- 
pliant while  it  asks  for  a little  of  that  wealth  of 
which  the  whole  belongs  to  its  Lord! 


A Creed  for  Christian  Stewards 

w HAT  DO  WE  NEED?  NOT  MORE 
collections.  Not  fewer  collections.  We  need  a gen- 
eration of  Christian  men  who  will  understand  the 
plain  truth  about  the  stewardship  of  money.  What 
is  this  truth?  We  might  put  it  into  a creed  for 
Christian  stewards. 


TEN  MILLION  CHRISTIAN  STEWARDS 


The  New  Emphasis 


I  BELIEVE 

I My  money  is  mine  only  in  trust.  It  be- 
longs to  God,  just  as  I do. 

II  This  money  is  not  filthy  lucre.  It  is  not 
the  devil’s  coin.  It  is  stored-up  human  power. 
It  is  so  much  of  myself  which  I can  set  at 
work  in  China  or  India  or  New  York  or 
Colorado. 

III  God  is  counting  upon  this  money  for 
His  work.  It  is  to  build  His  churches  and 
preach  His  gospel,  train  His  workers  and 
send  them  out,  teach  and  heal  and  save  His 
children,  and  help  bring  in  a new  kingdom  of 
righteousness  and  brotherhood  and  peace. 

IV  To  spend  my  income  rightly  is  one  of 
my  first  tasks  as  a Christian.  Until  I set- 
tle this,  my  prayers  and  confessions  will  be 
like  saying  “Lord,  i^ord”  and  not  doing  the 
will  of  my  Father. 

V I should  set  aside  a definite  proportion  of 
my  income  for  the  church  and  the  service  of 
others.  I do  this  in  acknowledgment  of  God’s 
sovereignty  over  all  of  my  material  posses- 
sions. I do  this  to  guard  against  my  own 
selfishness.  I do  this  because  it  is  business- 
like. Giving  by  impulse  and  without  system 
does  not  accord  with  the  importance  of  this 
work. 

VI  The  proportion  to  be  set  aside  for  these 
purposes  should  not  be  less  than  one-tenth  of 
my  income.  The  Old  Testament  enjoined  the 
tithe  in  ancient  Israel,  and  surely  I am  re- 
ceiving far  more  from  Uod  than  did  the  men 


TEN  MILLION  CHRISTIAN  STEWARDS 


8 


The  New  Emphasis 


of  any  former  generation.  Nevertheless  one- 
tenth  is  not  to  be  the  limit  of  my  giving.  I 
should  not  begin  with  less  than  one-tenth.  I 
ought  to  give  more  if  I am  able. 

VII  I should  invest  this  money  for  God  as 
carefully  as  in  my  temporal  business,  and  keep 
strict  account  of  this  fund.  I should  study 
the  church  and  its  work  that  I may  give 
wisely.  I should  give  systematically.  I should 

Results  for  the  Church 

w HAT  WOULD  IT  MEAN  FOE  THE 
church  to  have  a generation  of  Christian  men 
adopt  this  creed? 

The  church  would  be  set  free  for  the  real  task 
of  saving  and  serving  men. 

We  could  face  a bigger  program  and  have  re- 
sources to  back  it  up. 

We  could  at  once  double  our  forces  in  city  and 
frontier  and  foreign  field,  and  the  church  would 
mark  the  greatest  advance  of  its  history  since 
Paul  took  an  empire  for  his  parish. 

Christian  Inspiration 

W HAT  WOULD  SUCH  SYSTEMATIC 
giving  mean  for  Christian  men? 

Moral  Victory 

It  would  mean  moral  victory.  We  have  slurred 
over  the  passages  in  which  Jesus  has  pointed  out 
the  peril  of  money.  He  made  it  one  of  the  two 
great  dangers  of  the  Christian  life — the  love  of 
the  world  and  the  fear  of  the  world.  There  are 


TEN  MILLION  CHRISTIAN  STEWARDS 


The  New  Emphasis 


multitudes  of  Christian  men  whom  God  has  pros- 
pered who  are  actually  giving  a less  percentage 
of  their  income  today  than  ten  or  twenty  years 
ago.  It  hurts  them  to  give  what  they  do.  Their 
danger  is  as  real  as  that  of  the  drunkard  or  gam- 
bler, and  more  subtle.  A fixed  proportion  set 
definitely  aside  means  moral  victory. 

Freedom  and  Joy 

It  would  mean  freedom  and  joy  in  giving.  The 
Lord  loveth  a cheerful  giver,  but  mere  are  many 
people  to  whom  giving  is  more  like  pulling  a tooth. 
Benjamin  Adams  of  sainted  name  wrote  on  “The 
Fun  of  Giving.”  Set  a proportion  apart  once  for 
all.  You  will  find  so  much  freedom  and  joy  in 
the  spending  of  it  that  you  will  want  to  increase 
the  amount. 

Richer  Spiritual  Life. 

It  would  mean  a richer  spiritual  life.  There 
is  only  one  method  of  spiritual  growth.  That  is 
fellowship  with  God.  And  here  is  a fellowship  in 
the  things  that  are  most  like  God  and  that  He 
cares  most  about — giving  and  loving  and  serving, 
indeed,  there  is  no  salvation  at  all  without  this. 
Salvation  is  just  another  word  for  life.  And  Jesus 
knows  no  other  kind  of  life  or  salvation  than  this: 
“Except  a grain  of  wheat  fall  into  the  ground 
and  die  by  itself  it  abideth  alone.  He  that  lov- 
eth his  life  loseth  it.” 

I know  one  man  in  an  Eastern  city  whose  friends 
have  seen  his  life  grow  each  year  richer  and  strong- 
er, broader  in  sympathy  and  larger  in  vision,  be- 
cause his  giving  has  put  him  in  touch  with  the 
noblest  spirits  and  the  greatest  movements  in  his 


TEN  MILLION  CHRISTIAN  STEWARDS 


10 


The  New  Emphasis 


city,  his  country,  and  throughout  the  world.  It 
has  been  an  unsurpassed  education.  Shall  not  the 
revival  for  which  we  pray  come  this  way,  not  in 
big  tabernacles  and  crowds  and  statistics,  but  in 
the  larger  life  of  this  Spirit  of  Christ,  filling  His 
church  and  His  people. 

The  Lord’*  Account 

F OR  THESE  PRINCIPLES  AND  STATE- 
ments  there  are  many  witnesses.  Here  is  the 
letter  of  a noble  layman  who  serves  equally  with 
time  and  money:  “I  am  gxad  to  bear  testimony  to 
the  enrichment  of  my  own  spiritual  life  through 
systematic  giving.  For  several  years  I have  kept 
an  entirely  separate  bank  account  wmch  I call 
the  ‘Lord’s  Account.’  In  that  account  I deposit 
every  month  one-fifth  of  my  income.  In  that  way 
I divest  my  mind  entirely  of  any  need  to  consider 
whether  I can  give  or  not,  leaving  only  the  ques- 
tion of  the  objects  to  be  chosen.  The  giving  has 
already  been  done.  The  above  method  I adopted 
after  talking  it  over  with  my  wife.  It  has  proven 
to  be  a great  blessing  to  us  both.” 

ProHi-thtMrimg  with  Humanity 

W ILLIAM  P.  HARTLEY,  MANUFAC- 
turer  and  Primitive  Methodist  layman  of  Eng- 
and,  says:  “Probably  the  greatest  event  of  my  ife 
occurred  on  January  1,  1677.  On  that  day  my 
wife  and  I made  a written  vow  that  we  would 
devote  a definite  share  of  our  income  for  religious 
and  humanitarian  work,  and  that  this  should  be  a 
first  charge.  Since  that  date  we  have  often  in- 


TEN  MILLION  CHRISTIAN  STEWARDS 


10 


The  New  Emphasis 


creased  the  proportion,  so  that  the  original  per- 
centage is  left  far  behind.  As  our  income  has  in- 
creased, we  have  felt  that  religious  and  humani- 
tarian work  had  a greater  claim  upon  us.  The 
distribution  of  the  Lord’s  portion  has  been  the 
greatest  joy  of  my  life  and  a real  means  of  grace. 
It  has  kept  me  in  constant  touch  with  the  promo- 
tion of  Christ-like  work  of  all  kinds,  and  anything 
I have  been  able  to  do  for  Christ  and  humanity 
(including  profit-sharing  with  my  work-people  for 
over  twenty  years)  has  grown  out  of  the  vow 
made  thirty-three  years  ago.”  Yv  hen  a great 
church  conference  rose  to  do  this  man  reverence 
he  simply  said:  “Of  thine  own  have  I given  thee. 
Lord.”  His  proportion  has  increased  in  these 
years  from  one-tenth  to  one-third. 

Will  You? 

Someone  is  saying,  “all  that  is 

TRUE  AND  I SHOULD  FOLLOW  IT  IF  I 
WERE  RICH  LIKE  MY  NEIGHBOR.”  MY 

brother,  this  is  not  the  special  duty  of  a few  that 
we  have  been  talking  about.  And  the  test  of  our 
Christian  life  is  not  what  we  should  do  with  our 
neighbor’s  wealth,  but  what  manner  of  stewards 
we  are  in  the  little  or  the  much  that  we  possess. 

Between  two  native  converts  on  the  mission  field 
this  talk  took  place: — 

“If  you  had  a hundred  sheep,  would  you  give 
fifty  of  them  for  the  Lord’s  work?” 

“Yes,  I would.” 

“Would  you  do  the  same  if  you  had  a hundred 
cows  ?” 

“Yes,  I would.” 


TEN  MILLION  CHRISTIAN 


12 


The  New  Emphasis 


“Would  you  do  the  same  if  you  had  a hundred 
horses?” 

“Yes,  I would.” 

“If  you  had  two  piers,  would  you  give  one  of 
them  to  Him?” 

“No,  I wouldn’t;  and  you  have  no  right  to  ask 
me  when  you  know  I have  two  pigs.” 

The  Lord’s  chief  need  is  not  great  gifts.  It  is 
men  who  own  His  Lordship  in  business  and  in 
time  and  in  money.  Humble  folks  and  rich  folks, 
for  their  sake  and  the  world’s  sake:  He  wants 
them  all. 


We  are  not  our  own,  we  are  bought 
with  a 'price.  Every  throb  of  our  pulse, 
every  faculty  of  our  nature,  every  posses- 
sion that  we  hold,  is  not  ours,  but  His. 
Let  each  of  us  nail  up  over  the  door  of  our 
being  the  words  which  St.  Paul  uttered 
amid  the  dash  of  the  storm,  “Whose  I am 
and  whom  I serve." 


Principles  of  Christian 
Stewardship 

1.  God  is  the  owner  of  all  things. 

2.  Every  man  is  a steward  and  must  give  an 
account  for  all  that  is  entrusted  to  him. 

3.  God’s  ownership  and  man’s  stewardship 
ought  to  be  acknowledged. 


TEN  MILLION  CHRISTIAN  STEWARDS 


The  New  Emphasis 


13 


4.  This  acknowledgment  requires,  as  part  of 
its  expression,  the  setting  apart  for  the  ex- 
tension of  the  Kingdom  of  Christ,  such  a 

• portion  of  income  as  is  recognized  by  the 
individual  to  be  the  will  of  God.* 

5.  This  separated  portion  ought  to  be  adminis- 
tered for  the  Kingdom  of  Christ,  and  the 
remainder  recognized  as  no  less  a trust. 

* Note:  Most  Christian  Stewards  begin  with  the 
tenth.  The  proportion  should  increase  as  income 
increases.  The  Federal  Income  Tax  Law  exempts 
to  15  per  cent,  of  income  given  for  purposes  of 
religion,  charity,  etc, 


“The  way  beyond  the  alphabet  is  through 
the  alphabet , and  the  way  beyond  the 
tenth  is  through  the  tenth.” 


OTHER  STEWARDSHIP  LITERATURE 

Catechism  of  Christian  Stewardship.  (Cushman), 
12  pages. 

The  Stewardship  of  Money.  (F.  B.  Meyer),  16 
pages. 

Proportionate  Giving.  (R.  E.  bpeer),  14  pages. 

Sunday  school  Stewardship  Programs.  (Series 
of  4), 

The  Church  Treasurer  Who  Got  Mad.  (Peter- 
son), 8 pages. 

TEN  MILLION  CHRISTIAN  STEWARDS 


14 


The  New  Emphasis 


February  Stewardship  Period.  8 pages. 

A True  Story  of  a Live- Wire  Reading  Contest. 
12  pages. 

Enrolment  Cards. 

Scriptural  Stewardship.  (Wood), 

Giving  God  a Square  Deal.  (Drake),  14  pages. 
Thanksgiving  Ann.  (Hamilton),  12  pages. 

Text  Books 

The  New  Christian.  (Cushman),  Cloth.  50c; 
paper,  25c  each. 

(Chapter  7 suggests  outlines  for  Stewardship 
talks,  for  mid-week  services,  Sunday  Schools 
and  other  organiations  of- the  Church). 

Money  the  Acid  'lest.  (McConaughy),  Cloth, 
75c;  paper,  50c. 

(By  courtesy  of  the  New  Era  Movement). 


TEN  MILLION  CHRISTIAN  STEWARDS 


No.54.II.25.Jan.1920. 


